Lawyers’ Collective notes growing authoritarianism under President

• Says President’s actions could lead to political upheaval and further economic uncertainty

By Lakmal Sooriyagoda 

The Lawyers’ Collective, a prominent legal advocacy group in Sri Lanka, is concerned about growing authoritarianism under Sri Lanka’s President. 

In a statement, the Lawyer’s Collective noted the growing authoritarianism of the President, who serves without a mandate from the people. It further observed that people’s sovereignty as articulated by the Constitution cannot be flippantly dismissed as stated in several Supreme Court decisions including a majority decision delivered recently on the economic crisis. 

In a statement, the Lawyers’ Collective emphasised the importance of the corporate sector as well as the international community including the International Monetary Fund, taking grave notice of the growing authoritarianism of the President and the impact it has on good governance and the rule of law in Sri Lanka.

Lawyers’ Collective feared that it would lead to political upheaval and further economic uncertainty, if this authoritarian trajectory of the President continues unchecked. Meanwhile, the Lawyer’s Collective strongly condemned the recent attempt by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to intimidate the Constitutional Council of Sri Lanka. 

“In an authoritarian move, on November 23, 2023, President Wickremesinghe in an address to Parliament entirely misrepresented the constitutional purpose of the Constitutional Council by stating that the ‘Council falls under the Executive’. The heavy-handed and dangerous public comments of the President constitute a serious undermining of constitutionally imposed checks and balances in the governance of the country,” the statement added.

The Lawyer’s Collective maintained that the President’s decision to appoint a Parliamentary Select Committee to probe into delays by the Constitutional Council constitutes a threat to the members of the Constitutional Council, who are constitutionally mandated to deliberate on and independently decide on whether or not a presidential nominee will be approved. On behalf of the Lawyers’ Collective a group of President’s Counsels including Upul Jayasuriya, Dr. Jayampathy Wickramaratne, Geoffrey Alagaratnam, M.A. Sumanthiran, Dinal Phillips, Saliya Pieris, Attorneys-at-law Prof. Savitri Goonesekere, Prof. Deepika Udagama, Lal Wijenayake, Upul Kumarapperuma and several others signed the statement.